The Existential Series
by mmouse15
Summary: Prowl and Jazz were meant for each other - a story of how and why.
1. The Beginning

Prompt: "I met you, the stars sparkled, and I was born"

Summary: Prowl has always been there.

* * *

In the beginning, the world was dark. A voice came out of the darkness, saying unto me, "Thou art the child of my spark. Come into the world and receive thy proper form."

And there was a world. I found myself cradled in the hand of a giant. There were others with me, and gradually, the giant added more until there were thirteen of us in all.

Then our creator, our god, our world, gave us our tasks. To my first brother, he gave the task of keeping the light, the Matrix of Leadership. To my second brother he gave the guardianship of space and time. In this manner, he gave us all our tasks.

My duty was to be the gateway for the newsparks, to send them to the proper frame at the proper time. It was an honourable duty, one I was proud to have, and I worked hard at it, taking care of the fragile new lives that passed through my hands. My brothers and I were good guardians and our world, our society, was peaceful and productive.

Then came Unicron. Many of my brothers were killed, their sparks fleeing back to Primus' care. Primus himself was badly wounded, both in body and spirit, since one of my brothers turned his back on Primus and threw his lot in with Unicron.

After the defeat of Unicron and the Fallen, Primus folded himself into his alt form to heal and left the care of his body and his creations to those who remained. One sad duty, however, remained before he did this.

He took away my charge. The Fallen had the task of creating the bodies for the newsparks that I had charge over, and since the Fallen was gone and Primus had removed his charge, he worried that my duty would give the Fallen a gateway to come back from the dimension he'd be thrown into. He created the Allspark with my assistance; it would be the new gateway for the newsparks, and the formation of bodies would be left to the people themselves. I poured my spark into the Allspark, giving it my devotion, my empathy, my joy and my spirit – everything that I put into choosing the correct spark for the correct frame – and stepped back. Primus activated the cube, then folded himself into his planetary form and left the guarding of the cube to me. I served as the primary priest of the Allspark until another appropriate spark came along and I could pass the duty onto him.

I worked until I could find my place in this new society. Primus continued to help me when I truly struggled as our society evolved around us. I was the only one remaining that had this struggle, and it was, I believe, because I was the only one that had my duty removed from me. Finally, Primus appeared to me in his avatar form, a ghostly presence at my brother's haven.

"I have watched you, Custos, as you have done your best to find a new duty. I was wrong to remove that duty from you, but I can not take back the steps we went through."

I bowed my head to him. "I understand this, Primus. I will find my place."

Primus shook his head. "I have found your new place, my son. You will be essential, but not a leader. Your place has always been as a support to those in need and so you will be again. I wish to gift you with something."

Again I bowed, "As you wish, Primus."

Primus offered his hand, and I cupped my own to receive what he offered.

A newspark danced over my plating, and my spark, quiescent for so long, moved in my chest and began to thrum to a new beat, matching the pulses of the newspark. Primus gently scooped the spark up and told me, "This spark shall be your match. All that you gave to the Allspark will be in him, and what he lacks you have remaining. Together, you shall be whole and strong."

He waved his hand, and I did not remember.

"Want another?" The gruff proprietor of the bar, Maccadam himself, was looking at the container of oil in front of me, almost drained of the contents.

I shook my head. I was here to wash away my grief, not drown my sorrows. Sentinel Prime was dead, killed in an unnecessary skirmish, and a new Prime needed to be found quickly. The civil war that was started would burn our world to ash if we could not find a leader to stand strong against the rebellion and its leaders.

Maccadam took the emptied container away, then came back to wipe the bar near me. He nodded, then patted my arm. Normally, I would have been offended at the touch of a stranger, but for some reason, unknown to me, his touch was soothing.

"You'll be fine, Prowl. Best to get back."

I nodded and vacated my stool, heading back to the headquarters of the Autobots.

Once there, I was greeted with confusion and hysteria.

"A new Prime! We have a new Prime!" echoed through the corridors. Several of the older mechs, generals of our army in a sense, began snapping orders. Gradually, chaos receded and calm prevailed. When the new Prime arrived to inspect us, we looked professional and steady. The new Prime, Optimus, met with us as a group, then chose several to meet with individually. As Sentinel Prime's chief tactician, I was one he chose to meet with in a more intimate setting.

He arrived at my office after meeting with Kup, the no nonsense sergeant that took our new recruits and turned them into soldiers and warriors. He had a mech with him, a quiet fellow that observed but did not speak. I had arranged my duties so that I was all around the base, observing the pair as they went around, observing in their turn.

I rose from my chair and offered the new Prime a bow, a gesture of respect that felt genuine. Something about this mech was worthy of my admiration, and I immediately felt better than I had for a quite a few cycles, since Sentinel had fallen to the rebels.

"Prime? I am Prowl."

He offered his forearm in the traditional gesture, and I clasped his arm as he clasped mine. He then turned to his shadow and introduced him.

"This is Jazz, my lieutenant."

Jazz stepped forward and also offered his arm. As I brushed his plating with my own, a sensation I had never felt before stole over me, a peacefulness I could not remember having felt before. My spark, always anxious, calmed and settled into a new rhythm.

I realized as I stared into the optics of this mech that Sentinel's passing had not been the end, as I had believed, but the beginning. I smiled.

"Jazz. It's good to meet you."

The beginning.


	2. The Beginning v 2

Prompt: "I met you, the stars sparkled, and I was born"

Summary/Notes: From Jazz's POV.

* * *

I have always been alone.

My creators were kind, and I had a happy sparklinghood. I was adaptable and never lacked for friends. But I always knew, deep in my spark, that there was something missing, something that was not the love for my creators or for my friends, but deeper, more fundamental. A hole I was aware of, if you will.

It didn't bother me when I was young, but as I got older and my friends paired off, I began to feel the lack. There was no attraction for me to anyone, mech or femme. There were many attracted to me, but I didn't feel a pull in return.

So I made my way through life unencumbered by burdens of the spark. I had many friends and a thirst for life that allowed me to take sips here and there, learning all I could from those I met along my life's path.

When I met the mech that became Optimus Prime, I thought he was too good to be true. I did not have his deep abiding faith that everyone was good and only needed an opportunity to demonstrate their innate kindness. Orion was the eternal optimist. I balanced him, having seen more of life and having a more cautious approach to other people.

Then the war started, and soon thereafter, Sentinel Prime was targeted for assassination. He avoided death for a long time, but eventually, he pushed too far, trusted his armour too much, trusted his opponent to keep his word. His death was not a surprise to me, but what occurred afterward was.

Orion was not expecting to be chosen as the next Prime. He had shown up with some research for the Council at the behest of Alpha Trion, and the Matrix of Leadership chose him. It was…astonishing. The Council was in an uproar, but could not deny the choosing. My friend Orion became Optimus Prime; the Matrix changed his body, but not his spark.

More astonishing was when Optimus chose me as his second-in-command. I'd been his friend for vorns, I was helpful to him and always gave him my honest opinion when we argued philosophy, but I had no idea that Orion valued my input so much.

So. After a few heady days of getting oriented, we began touring various outposts until we finally got to the main camp where Sentinel had his headquarters. Everyone was in good shape, quiet and professional when they lined up for inspections, but there was an air of uncertainty that hung over the entire place.

We did the inspection, then met with key members of Sentinel's staff; his weapons master, his drill sergeant, his tactician…

His tactician. Prowl. Prowl was the most formal and old-fashioned of Sentinel's officers. He was the only one to bow to the Prime, and to offer his arm in the traditional greeting. Optimus clasped forearms with him, then introduced me and Prowl offered me his arm. I took it and my world shifted.

My spark moved. That sounds so small, doesn't it? It wasn't . I'd never felt anything with my spark, no leap of its brightness, no whirling within as my optics met someone else's, no bound as my lover came to me. Never, in all my vorns of existence, had my spark ever reacted to another person. Now it did.

He spoke, saying , " Jazz. It's good to meet you."

I stammered out my own greeting, telling him, "Prowl. I hope we'll work together well."

He smiled and said, "I think we will."

My world began at that moment. I had found someone that moved my spark, made my soul sing, and all I had to do was convince him.


	3. What Happens Next

Prompt: "Loving someone deeply gives you strength; being loved deeply by someone gives you courage".

What happens after "The Beginning" from Prowl's POV.

* * *

I stared at the mech who had changed the rhythm of my spark. He stammered out a greeting , and I could tell that this was an uncommon occurrence, because the Prime gave him an odd look.

Forcibly, I turned my attention away from this mech, this magnet to my spark, and placed it where it properly belonged, on the new Prime, my new commander.

I voiced my concern that I was not fit for my post, given Sentinel's death. The Prime reassured me and we continued going over the army's standing. His lieutenant didn't say much, but when he did comment, it was precise and pithy. Jazz had a knack for seeing flaws and holes, and my respect for him rose throughout the meeting.

Then came the difficult portion of the meeting. Jazz was the new Prime's second; I was the old Prime's second. We both couldn't be second. I resigned myself to a demotion, but was surprised.

"Nah, I think it would be better if you kept Prowl. It would reassure the army, and probably help smooth the transition. I'd rather be somewhere that I can really help." Jazz said as soon as the topic was raised and the Prime indicated that Jazz should be the second-in-command.

I spoke up, "Our head of operations was also killed with Sentinel Prime, and he was the third-in-command."

The Prime asked, "What does a head of operations do?"

"He was in charge of supplies, making sure the equipment necessary was on hand when it was needed, he was the head of the Special Operations division, and on the whole, kept the army running."

Optimus Prime quirked an optic ridge and looked at Jazz. "Sounds like just your thing, Jazz."

Jazz was looking calculating. "I'll make it my thing, Optimus."

He then asked me, "What is Special Operations?"

I was uneasy, but explained, "They are the division that is in charge of spying, sabotage, assassinations, infiltration, and other…behind the scenes work."

"You mean the dirty work of making sure the Decepticons aren't as ready as they want to be." Jazz said.

"Yes." I agreed.

Both Jazz and the Prime spoke at the same time. "Perfect."

I was taken aback by their easy acceptance of the dirty underside of fighting a war, but they had already started to discuss ways and means of increasing the Special Operations portion of the operations division. I listened, since their ideas would directly affect my own division of tactics and strategic planning.

Jazz and the Prime seemed to have an easy working relationship, as they left things unsaid but agreed with each other. I had always had such a formal relationship with Sentinel Prime, and this easy back-and-forth was foreign to me. I admired it, however, and vowed to learn from watching them work together.

They wrapped up their discussion and returned their attention to me, the Prime offering me an apology, which I waved off, and then an explanation.

"Jazz and I have been friends for a long time, and I have relied on his knowledge of what's been happening to formulate many of my own actions. I hope you will be able to be a part of our team, Prowl, and help us."

I bowed slightly. "I will do my best, Prime, and do my utmost to keep you and Jazz informed."

Jazz chuckled and told the Prime, "I'll work on him, Optimus."

"Don't break him, Jazz. I'm pretty sure we're going to need him." The Prime rose and clapped a hand on Jazz's shoulder. "I'm going to find my quarters. Prowl, please call a staff meeting for the next cycle. We need to get moving forward, not backward, and I want input from everyone on what they think the next step should be for us."

"Yes, Prime." I stood and bowed as the Prime left.

Jazz watched from his seat until I had reseated myself.

I waited for him to speak, but it took a bit of time. Finally, he roused himself and leaned forward, reaching carefully for my arm. He wrapped his hand around my forearm and held on.

Once again, my spark surged in my chest, almost as if it were reaching for something. Jazz must have felt something similar, because he pulled on my arm as he stood. I went along with his coaxing, standing myself and maneuvering around the desk until we were standing in front of each other. Jazz released my arm and moved his hands to my shoulders. My hands naturally fell to his hips. He moved another step forward, until our chests touched.

My spark was leaning in its chamber, striving to reach its match, so close and yet…

Jazz's chestplates began to transform, shifting and moving along his torso so he could move closer to me. I watched, having never seen this before, until he had only a thin sheet of armour over his protoform. I mimicked him, signaling my own armour and banished another barrier between us.

Our sparks thrummed between us, their mutual rhythm soothing and exciting at the same time. I was trembling, overwhelmed by the sensations bombarding my processor. I gave passing thought to my logic circuits, which should have been overheating by now, but they were quiescent. This was beyond logic.

We stood like that for a breem. I enjoyed the sensations of my spark, and holding Jazz close to me was not unpleasant. Finally, he gathered his courage and spoke.

"I've never heard of love at first touch, but, Prowl, it happened to me. It's not fair. We have this war going on, and I think it's going to take a lot longer to fight than the Council does, and so I can't just see what happens between us. But I love you, and I want to be with you." Jazz leaned his head forward, tucking it between my shoulder and neck, his exhalations puffing against the sensitive cords of my neck.

I pulled him minutely closer and tried to match his courage with my own. "Jazz. If we are meant to be, it will work out. Let's…take our time and see where this goes, alright?"

His head nodded against my body, and I succumbed to temptation, brushing a kiss against his cheekplate.

His visor surged on-line and he raised his head, looking at me closely. Then he smiled, and the light of a thousand stars shot through me. He was my sun, the center of my universe, the person who gave me strength to keep going, and I was helpless before his brilliance.

He touched my cheek with his fingers, and I leaned into the touch. He smiled again and said, "Yeah. I can do this, as long as you're here."

I nodded. Against all that was logical, this emotional connection was my lifeline and Jazz was on the other end, keeping me strong and focused.

We stepped away from each other, our armour shifting back to cover us, and returned to the personas the rest of the world saw. Only together like this would we reveal our true selves.

To be continued…


	4. Progress

Prompt: "Yes I know said that, but I actually meant..."

Summary/Notes: A continuation of "What Happens Next", still from Prowl's POV.

* * *

Jazz was flirting. I knew that he and Optimus were suspicious of the new mech that had joined our crew, but it was taking every bit of restraint I had to not get up, push that mech aside and shove Jazz against the nearest surface and claim him. I'd never behave this way! I knew that Jazz was not emotionally involved, I knew that this was just part of his job, and I knew that he would never step over the lines he drew for himself, but it was difficult for me to watch.

I restrained my baser desires and rose to my feet, gathering the few datapads I had brought with me to review before the officer's meeting. As I stood, the other officers also rose and began moving toward the exit, murmuring among themselves as they did so.

The war was not going well. Megatron had an advantage over us – he had the Vosnian flyers, who now called themselves Seekers – on his side. Their aerial advantage was difficult for us to defend against, and we were facing high losses at this point in the war. My department was stretched to its limits, attempting to apply tactics to a situation that was beyond our abilities. Jazz's department had been divided shortly after he became head. He had promoted a mech that was a genius at supply and demand and taken over the Special Operations division. This arrangement allowed us the full genius of Jazz's abilities, and he was the only reason we were still fighting the war. His special operatives were well placed, sneaky, and willing to wait for vorns before making their moves. Meanwhile, we were getting excellent intel and thus, the ability to stifle some of Megatron's plans, although we needed more fighters and something to combat the Decepticon Air Command.

I glanced at Jazz as I walked by him. He was excusing himself to Darkspot, telling the mech that he had to go to this meeting and wasn't it a shame that it was intruding on their time. He managed to extricate himself as I drew by and joined me.

_::Persistent bugger.::_ Jazz commed me on our private link, established an orn after we met. We found that we couldn't stand to not be able to talk to one another as we pleased, and had exchanged comm links. It was a very satisfactory arrangement.

_::Indeed.::_ I agreed.

Jazz grinned at me. _::Had to restrain yourself, didn't ya?::_

I nodded as we approached the meeting room, and Jazz's smiled bloomed for a brief moment. He put on a more serious expression as we entered the room and moved to our places.

As I expected, the meeting was a gloomy affair. We were doing our best, but we needed a tool or weapon we didn't have, and so all we were able to do was fight a holding war and hope that something would change.

After the meeting, Jazz followed me to my office. This was not an uncommon occurrence, and no-one took notice as Jazz slipped in behind me and closed the door.

I laid my datapads down and turned to hold him. We had managed little steps in our relationship thus far; exchanged comm links, little glances, intimate moments like this, a shared understanding that we were meant to be. These little intimacies fed our sparks' desire, but this had to be enough to sustain us for the time being and we clung to the little pieces that tied us together.

He curled into my arms, armour already out of the way. He'd quickly moved to exposing his protoform to me, and the first time had been a revelation. I let the file play as I held Jazz close to me.

_I had held out my arms to Jazz, who was upset at the loss of his operative. He had moved easily into my arms, shifting his armour out of the way as he moved. I was astonished to see the dark grey of his protoform exposed as he snuggled himself into my body. My spark was bounding in my chest, striving to get ever closer to its mate._

_The feel of Jazz's protoform scrambled all my circuits, and my last armour shifted, exposing my protoform to Jazz. He drew in a deep draught of air at the feel, just as I was doing, and we basked in our love and the fire of our sparks' attraction._

We didn't have time for a long session of holding each other this time, so data was also exchanged as we held each other over our comm links; the what and wherefore of running an army under pressure.

My door burst open, and the look on the Prime's face was knowing as he said, "Darkspot's heading this way."

We pulled apart and shifted our armour, moving quickly to look the part of the Prime's second and third. Jazz grabbed his datapad, opening it and starting in the middle of a sentence as he tilted the screen to show the Prime what he was talking about.

The Prime played along, leaning over Jazz to look at the datapad as I pulled out a datapad of my own.

"…so if we concentrate on this base, we might be able to clear a path for our supply lines and removed some of the hazards there."

The door's chime was not unexpected, and I called out, "Enter."

The door opened, and as the Prime had warned, the new mech was in the doorway. He looked surprised to see the Prime with us, but forged ahead.

"Oh, hi, Jazz. I knew your meeting was over and wondered where you were. We hadn't finished going over the details of the new operation."

Jazz nodded. "Yes, Darkspot, I know. I'll join you in my office when Prime and Prowl and I have finished up a couple of details here. I'll be there in a breem."

Darkspot nodded and stepped back, reluctance in his rigidly held frame. The door closed and hesitant steps moved away.

Jazz turned and thunked his head down on my shoulder. I patted him and said, "Duty calls."

Prime chuckled. "I want you to know that Prima is thrilled about the pair of you. I'm not sure why, but I'm supposed to pass that message on to you." He stepped back and saluted us as he pressed the door pad and left.

For an unknown reason, the simple message sent warmth through my systems, the approval of the first Prime soothing something in the back of my processor. I set the feeling aside to examine later and brought my beloved's attention back to the job at hand.

"Go, Jazz. You need to set him up."

"It's a pain, Prowl. That mech is all over me, and I don't want him to touch."

I soothed him. "I know. You're doing a good job of keeping him at a distance, but some interaction is necessary. I don't like that you have to do this, either, Jazz."

Jazz peered up at me. "I hate it. All I can think about is you, and his touches feel all wrong."

I gathered my courage and told him, "All you have to do is come to me, and I'll erase his touches with my own." I bent slightly and brushed a kiss over his lip plates, breathing out as I did so. It was one of our little traditions, sending a bit of ourselves into the other when we had to part.

Jazz sucked in my air, pulling it deep into his systems. He stepped back and grabbed his datapads, giving me a smile as he left.

Shakily, I seated myself and reminded my spark that bonding in the middle of a war was a very bad idea.

* * *

As we had suspected, Darkspot was a Decepticon operative. We had not expected that he would fall pedes over audials in love with Jazz and offer us everything he could simply for the chance to stay around Jazz after he was caught. My beloved was horrified at the impassioned pleas for his time and attention after Darkspot was found out. The Prime had to intervene, telling Darkspot that he couldn't promise a mech to anyone, much less a known traitor.

"I'll come over to your side if you let me have him!" Darkspot told the Prime.

Prime's bodyguard, Ironhide, laughed. "You'd have a better time demanding attention from that wall right there. Jazz is friends with everybot, lover to nobot."

That simple statement sent an electrical shock along my spinal struts. Was that really how Jazz was viewed? I realised that I only knew Jazz through my own personal view of him, not through how others viewed him. I partitioned off that thread and returned my attention to the interrogation before me.

Darkspot was feeling something similar to my own thoughts, if his reaction was anything to go by. "I can make him love me! I just need a chance! Give me Jazz and I'll give you everything I know."

The object of this bargaining was listening just outside the door and he sent me a short message. _::Which isn't much. Shockwave had him pegged as a traitor; it's why he was sent here.::_

_::To become our problem and not his?::_ I returned.

_::Yup.::_

The Prime was unwilling to give Darkspot such a deal. "No. Give us what you know and we would be merciful."

Darkspot drew himself up and said, "Deactivation would be more merciful if I can't have him."

The Prime shook his head. "We don't operate like that."

It seemed there was no compromise. I sighed; the ache of weighty decisions such as this one wore on me. Sometimes the burden seemed too great to bear.

Jazz came into the room. Darkspot leaned forward, but Jazz ignored him, coming up to me and plastering himself along my back, wrapping his arms around my waist.

I leaned into him slightly, folding my arms over his and taking the comfort he offered to gather my strength. Jazz only stayed that way for a few moments, but it was enough to help me recover my equilibrium and focus myself on the grim task before me.

Ironhide was looking stunned, the Prime was amused, and Darkspot was devastated by the time Jazz lifted his head from my back and left the room.

The compromise was swiftly reached after that. Darkspot told us everything in exchange for a body reformat and a processor wipe so he could forget Jazz. The Prime was not happy about the deal, but the remainder of his command team was far more pragmatic. The mech was alive and on our side. We'd keep an optic on him, but he would never be allowed to meet Jazz again. Some things were too deeply written to be completely wiped away.

* * *

Ironhide came to see me after that. He'd also known Jazz before I had, but not as long as the Prime, and he was worried that I was somehow taking advantage of Jazz. I did my best to reassure him, but was unable to make much progress until the Prime and Jazz dropped into my office and found Ironhide there. Jazz immediately caught on to what was happening and reassured Ironhide himself. The Prime backed him, and I was relieved that he seemed to believe them.

We continued as before, now with one other mech aware of our relationship, and for a time, all seemed well.

Jazz and I had always been motivated to work together. It was part of our deep attraction to each other, a willingness to listen carefully and to put the best interpretation possible on what the other said. We emwanted/em to help each other, to work the other one. This willingness had gotten us over a few rough spots and had helped the Prime when he was running into opposition in the early times of him becoming head of the army – if Jazz and I were willing to work together, then there was little reason for anyone else to throw up roadblocks. It had smoothed the path the Prime had to walk, and in a way, had made our army stronger faster than expected. I'm sure Megatron had expected Sentinel Prime's death to wreak havoc on the Autobots. He was quite surprised to find that not only was the army better than under Sentinel, it was starting to make inroads on his army in the early cycles of the war. This Prime was far more willing to fight than Sentinel ever had been.

But to get back on-topic. Jazz finally came up with a Special Ops plan I could not support, and he was unwilling to make any of the changes I suggested. We actually were fighting with each other.

"I love you," Jazz blurted out, "but I don't like you very much right now." He stood up and made his way to the door, radiating anger. I moved quickly, grabbing his arm and swinging him around until his back was against the wall. I didn't lean on him, merely held his arms. He glared at me.

_::Jazz.::_

"No, Prowl. Not fair. I know this mission doesn't meet your parameters for success, but I really feel that it's important and needs to be done." Jazz refused to use our personal comm link, and his refusal told me how hurt he was and the great importance he placed on this idea.

I pulled back, not wishing to pressure Jazz through our connection, and asked, "What about your new operative?"

"He's not trained up yet." Jazz said.

"Yet, he has a very useful tool that will bring the mission specs up to my parameters." I told him.

Jazz scoffed. "He's a Towers mech. He has no idea of the dirty side of war."

I cocked my head and told him, "I believe Mirage has seen more of the dirty side of people than you ever will, Jazz. High society is not for the faint of spark, ever. The politics there are dirtier than in the Council chambers."

Jazz's optics widened. "No way!"

"You can have all the credits in the world and still have to fight for your life." I told him. "Give Mirage a chance. I think you'll find he's very good at what you do."

Jazz sighed. "Fine. I'll bring him along." He started to move away from the wall, but I stopped him.

"We need to fix this." I said.

"Fix what?" Jazz was bewildered.

"You said you didn't like me." I answered him.

He laughed. "I know I said that, but what I really meant was…"

I interrupted him, leaned toward him. "…what you actually meant was that you adore me. You can't live without me. Your spark leaps when it's around mine and you want to spend the rest of your cycles with me." I leaned closer, purring my next words directly into his audio receivers. "I feel the same way."

Jazz slumped, his ventilations coming faster than normal. "Oh, yeah."

I walked him backwards a step until he was back against the wall, then leaned in, parting my armour as he parted his. "We are stronger together than we are apart, Jazz. Promise me you'll always try to work with me."

He was shuddering, his protoform heating from the closeness of our bodies and the passion in my voice. "As long as you promise the same, Prowl."

"I promise." I whispered. Then I kissed him, not the light kisses we'd exchanged before, but a passionate kiss, full of promises and love. He moaned, opening his mouth and deepening the kiss.

It took everything I had to pull back from the fire of his love, but I managed it. He looked dazed, his lip plates lightly swollen and energon flushing his cheek plates. He looked thoroughly ravished, and I couldn't resist pressing another kiss to his lips.

We clung to each other until we'd calmed ourselves. I regretted our fight, but the making up afterwards was extremely pleasant. I held Jazz close to me, glad that we were able to reach a compromise without damaging our relationship.

Finally, Jazz pulled away slightly, and I released him. We put ourselves to rights, and tentatively I smiled at him. In return, I got one of his true smiles and my spark lifted at the sight.

"I'm sorry, Prowl." Jazz said to me.

"I'm sorry, too, Jazz. I will not take advantage of our closeness again."

"I know you won't. I'll be more flexible about my mission planning, because I know you're just trying to keep us as safe as possible." Jazz laid his hand on my chest as he spoke, and I covered his hand with my own.

I held my future in my arms, and I would do my best to work with him and build a relationship that could withstand any problems that lay in our future. He was worth every bit of my effort.

To be continued…!


	5. One Step Forward

Prompt: "It's always the quiet ones."  
Summary/Notes: A continuation of "Progress", still from Prowl's POV.

* * *

I stared at Optimus Prime for a microsecond too long. His optics gentled as he confirmed, "Yes. Jazz's team has been captured by the Deceptions. We received the emergency signal a breem ago."

I pushed the startled reaction of my spark to the back of my processor and focused on implications to the Autobots. Losing Jazz and his team would set us back for a long time, and we could not afford to lose ground to the Decepticons, nor could we afford to lose valuable trained resources such as Jazz, Mirage and Bumblebee.

"We have to rescue them." I stated.

"Yes," the Prime agreed, "we do. Assemble a team, Prowl. This is an 'optics-on-the-metal' mission."

I nodded my acquiescence and left him, running over the best team to rescue the three mechs. Brawn was a given, as was Smokescreen. I wanted to send Ironhide as the third member, but I would have to check with him first. His office was a few steps down the hall, and it would be worthwhile to check before I commed him.

He was in his office looking grumpy. I tapped my fingers against the frame to draw his attention. He looked up at the sound.

"Prowl. Good. You can help." He returned his gaze to the datapad in his hand. I stepped into the room, concerned. Ironhide finished reading and handed the datapad over.

Smokescreen was in the brig on another base, thrown in for gambling and cheating. I groaned.

"I was going to send Smokescreen to rescue Jazz. I was also going to send you, if you're available, Ironhide." I clicked the datapad off and replaced it on Ironhide's desk amid the clutter of weapon parts strewn over the surface.

He picked the datapad up and placed it up on a shelf behind him. "Yeah, I'm up for it. When do we leave?"

"Now." I said.

"You coming?" He asked.

"Yes." I made up my processor quickly. Someone with tactical programming was necessary, and Smokescreen had been the only mech readily available, as Trailbreaker was out on a scouting mission with Hound. I would have to take his place. I pulled up the plans we had created vorns ago for just such a contingency and started modifying them. We had no time to waste dithering. We had a brief window of time where we could rescue the team and after that, it would become a matter of negotiations.

Ironhide stood and we left his office. I commed Brawn and he joined us near one of the small back entrances to our headquarters. As I worked the plans, Ironhide and Brawn gathered the few supplies they thought necessary. Ratchet showed up briefly to hand over emergency medical kits, more complete than the field kits and containing medical grade energon. There were also clips to seal off energon leaks and emergency pumps to keep mechs alive until they could get to his medbay. We each subspaced a kit while Brawn put the finishing touches on his demolitions pouch and hefted it. Ironhide finished the modification he made to his gun and handed me an extra case of acid pellets for my gun.

The Prime saw us off. He was unhappy about having me go, but given how rapidly we needed to implement this mission, he also could see no other mech that could go along at such short notice. We slipped out, moving quietly but quickly along the tunnel until we reached one of the surface access points. Ironhide went first, then me followed by Brawn. We kept in close formation, moving as quickly as possible given the non-linear path we were forced to follow, tracking the three emergency beacons. These beacons were relatively new, an idea of Jazz's that Wheeljack had seized upon and made possible. They were low energy and sent out a neutrino pulse every joor or so. The Decepticons would soon figure out their beacons existed and terminate the pulses, which is why we had to rescue them quickly, but we were able to track them.

We boarded a transport for a lift closer to the source of the pulses and used our time to refine our plan. We would keep comm silence, Ironhide would be point and Brawn would be rear guard. We arrived in the low hills surrounding Kaon and our transport dropped down, taking off as soon as our pedes hit the metal. Delaying departure near the Decepticon stronghold was foolish.

We quickly approached a large structure in Kaon, the Decepticon headquarters. We were deeply in enemy territory, and my processors were working hard, running scenarios and factors and tracking as much as I could. Ironhide was an old hand at this, however. We had all changed our coloration to something dark and non-reflective, taking advantage of the shadows.

Ironhide moved around some buildings, moving to another side of the structure as another pulse came through. Jazz's pulse were first, followed rapidly by Mirage's and a little more slowly by Bumblebee's. The separation of the pulses allowed us to more finely pinpoint their location as long as they were all together.

Brawn was running his programs, seeking out tunnels and access points for him to get into the building. We followed him as he moved away from the large building, running in a straight line toward a cluster of buildings. He paused at a corner, then threw a shock grenade around the corner. As it blew, it sent out an EMP that off-lined any mechs in range. We went around the corner and secured the single sentry lying off-line next to an innocuous subsurface access point. I smiled. Posting a sentry was the same as putting a large flashing sign over the point, telling us that yes, this was a way into their headquarters.

Ironhide ruthlessly severed the comm lines of the sentry and secured him in such a way that even Brawn would be unable to break free. We opened the hatch and entered the tunnel, moving very quietly. Ironhide was again lead, and he was very careful, looking for other sentries. I scanned for recording devices as Brawn watched our backs. I took out a couple of devices with well-placed shots, but each device would give away our location. We had to move quickly.

We were exceptionally lucky. The access point came out right beside the holding cells, and Ironhide was able to take out the sentry with a quick burst of ice from his gun. He moved to secure the sentry as Brawn moved to the fore and set a charge on the door. We all turned our backs and used the entry tunnel for cover as the charge took the door's lock out. Brawn forced the door, and we entered the cell block.

Our team was in three of the four cells, with another sentry in the room. I fired at him as Brawn came in low and took him down at the knee joints, breaking them , then smashing his fist into the sentry's head and knocking him off-line. Brawn moved to blow the cell doors, choosing Jazz's first as he looked to be in the worst condition. As soon as the door blew, I entered.

My beloved was a mess. Energon coated his chestplates and mouth. His visor flickered weakly, and I moved to get a ration down him so he could move. He couldn't drink the ration, and I extended the spike at the bottom of the container and pushed it into the main energon line in his neck. The ration did the necessary work of giving him energy, and he was able to sit up and even stand. His legs were a mess, plating gone and wires askew. I looked up.

Ironhide had taken care of Mirage, and the blue mech was also moving. Brawn had Bumblebee up. We moved out, mostly carrying our charges. Brawn and Bumblebee came last. Bumblebee was the least hurt of the team, and he was able to walk, giving Brawn the freedom to cover our rear.

We moved quickly, uncaring about noise at this point. The Decepticons had to know we were here; it was only a matter of time before they came to try and stop us. As we ran down the tunnel, a clatter of pedes and muffled shouts began to echo after us.

We reached the surface access point and I went up first, taking Jazz and Mirage from Ironhide, covering as Bumblebee and Brawn came out. Ironhide slammed the lid down and froze it, sealing it and buying us a little more time.

We headed for the hills surrounding Kaon, splitting up as we did so. We would meet up again at a check-in point where a team was waiting to transport us back to our headquarters.

Ironhide was carrying Mirage, moving quickly. Mirage was awake enough to have a gun in hand and ready to shoot. Bumblebee was moving on his own, Brawn's assistance barely needed.

Jazz was in terrible shape. He and I would be the slowest team, unable to move as quickly as the others. I began to lay out a meandering path, hoping to throw off our pursuers. Jazz was clinging to me, doing his best to move on his own, but he had been terribly used and all his systems were off-kilter, his engine stuttering and sputtering, his visor flickering and his gyros damaged, so he was unable to stay upright. I was his prop, his aid to escape, and I did my best to support and succor him as we moved.

I headed to a cave which had been part of a series of caves before the war. Monsters dwelt there, and I felt a 92% confidence that the Deceptions avoided the cave system. Without much choice, I could not avoid the caves. I needed time to repair Jazz and get him more fit and able to move. I felt we were far enough away from Kaon to have a little time.

I maneuvered Jazz through the opening of the cave, which was narrow and dark, making our dual motion difficult. It would help protect us, though, since this narrow slit was difficult to find unless you knew it was there or were right on top of it.

We entered the cave, which had been worn in the skin of the planet by the wave action of an acid sea that had retreated millions of vorns ago, leaving behind this weakened remnant in our planet's surface. The sides were rough and the floor of the cave was covered in metallic grains washed from deeper in the surface to fall here as the acid changed momentum and thus, got rid of its load of detritus. It made for a soft flooring, but I worried that the detritus would contaminate some of Jazz's injuries. Without any alternative, I helped him to an edge of the cave and lowered him down, beginning my examination.

His chestplates had been forced open. I coaxed him into opening them and applied lubrication to the hinges and a soothing gel to his protoform, bringing a sigh of relief from Jazz. It did not look as if his torturer had done any damage to his protoform and thus, to his spark, for which I was grateful.

His comm lines were disabled, but easily repaired. His mandible had been dislocated, and although I shied away from repairing it, he asked me to do so. He showed me where to push and I did so, bringing a scream of pain from him as the joint clicked back into place. I dabbed numbing lubricant gel into the joint as best I could.

His legs were the worst. Plating was missing, wires torn, joints out of alignment, struts bent and damage evident all along his legs. My hands moved over his legs, unable to decide which injury had priority and thus, what I should work on first.

Jazz was able to help. The wiring was the biggest problem for him as that interfered with his motor control . Missing plating was really not a problem, but after motor control was restored, the joints were the next problem. One knee was so messed up there was no help for it. I rigged a brace for it with Jazz's help, and we were able to immobilize it. The other knee we were able to push back into place. His ankle joints were alright, stiff, but lubricant helped that. One hip was in bad shape, but it was the same leg as the bad knee joint, so we did our best to immobilize it. Ratchet or another medbot would have to do those repairs, as they were beyond anything I could do.

Once that was done, I helped him reset his gyros. One was damaged beyond repair, but he simply disabled it and that helped his balance considerably. Finally, we had repaired what we could and I offered him another medical ration of energon as I went back over to the entrance.

We were trapped. An acid ice storm had moved in while we'd been secluded in the cave. The landscape was a dim outline through the swirls of acidic ice slamming through the thin atmosphere of the planet. The spatter of acid against the ragged formations of metal sent shudders down my plating. This kind of storm could strip a mech to nothing in very little time. I hope the others had made it to the extraction point or to shelter before this storm had moved in.

I relayed the bad news to Jazz. He took it stoically, but a shudder crawled across his plating before he could control the reaction. These storms were one of the worst hazards of our planet. The best thing about this storm was that it would stop the Decepticons from following us. They wouldn't be out in this weather any more than we would.

I sat down next to Jazz and propped myself against the cave's wall, moving my doors until they were comfortable against the wall. I coaxed him into my arms and held him. Before long, he'd snuggled in, moving his sore chestplates out of the way and nestling in. I matched him, offering the warmth of my protoform against his. I extracted a thin heat-reflective blanket out of the medical kit and wrapped it around Jazz. He was shuddering against me, and I was appalled to feel how cold he was. The pain and the wounds and the lack of energon had led to many of his systems powering down or shutting down altogether, and he was unable to warm himself. The blanket and my heat helped get him warm, and he drifted into an uneasy recharge.

I held him against me and mused as I kept my optics open, watching the flicker of dim light from the entrance against the cave wall. I began to run dual threads through my mind, going over the mission and over my relationship with Jazz.

Jazz had found a comfort zone with me. It had come quickly, with him pushing an intimacy that, had it not been for the instant connection between us, would have had me pulling away from him. As it was, that connection between our sparks had allowed me to let him close to me despite my discomfort. Howver, for all that Jazz appeared free and easy, he would go so far and no further. I had finally become comfortable with our intimate moments and wished for more between us, but Jazz shied away from me during those times. I loved him, but I wanted more from him and he was the one uncomfortable with anything more, a surprising twist to our relationship.

The other thought was that our rescue and escape was too easy. The Decepticons had not put significant barriers in our way, and our fellow mechs were not damaged enough to stop us from getting them out. Finally, I gently moved Jazz away from me, tucking the blanket around his chest and pulling it aside on the injured leg. I began to carefully examine that leg, probing gently in the joints.

Tucked inside Jazz's knee was a tracking device. It was tiny, probably with a limited range, but more than enough to find us if they knew approximately where we were. Having set up the escape, it would be simple for them to follow us as a distance, sometimes being seen and always letting us think we were getting away from them, whereas we could not lose them.

I snarled softly to myself. This was not a good thing for us, and I needed to figure out how to deal with it.

A petrorat came sniffing into the cave from a small crack near the back. I looked at the tracking device, at the rat, and then I threw the device at the rat. It struck and stuck, bringing a high-pitched squeal from the rat as it retreated, a tracking device attached to its skin. One problem solved.

I turned my attention to the other problem. Jazz was huddled under the blanket. He was beginning to shiver, and I covered his leg and drew him up to my chest, moving the blanket aside to hold him securely. The answer came to me.

I would have to seduce Jazz.

To be continued…


	6. But When He Was Bad

Prompt: Bots behaving badly  
Summary/Notes: A continuation of "One Step Forward".

* * *

A ping echoed off my comm. I opened a line, and Trailbreaker's voice came over.

_::Hi ya, Prowl! I think you're in this cave and I'm just outside. Would ya check?::_

I extricated myself from Jazz, who was deeply in recharge at this point, and made my way to the entrance of our cave.

Trailbreaker was standing outside, his force field shielding him from the acid ice that continued to pound at the surface, a big grin on his face. My own smile responded to his. I waved at him, then turned back to retrieve Jazz, grateful for the short range ident beacons Ratchet had implemented when he became CMO; in situations like this, if we could get close enough, we could find other Autobots. My general route had been known, and when I didn't show up with Jazz for extraction, a team would have been sent out to find us.

It took some maneuvering to get Jazz up into my arms, but I managed it, carrying him still wrapped in his blanket toward the narrow slit that was our exit.

Trailbreaker had moved closer, extending his force field over the entrance so that no ice would fall on us. I moved as close to him as possible, and he offered to take Jazz from me. I gratefully accepted, since Jazz and I were of a size, while Trailbreaker is much larger and thus, it was easier for him to carry Jazz.

We made our way slowly across the landscape. I verified that Trailbreaker was carrying a canister of energon on his back, since his force field used a great deal of his fuel to function, but in situations such as this Trailbreaker's unique modification was invaluable. We were able to move in a storm that trapped the Decepticons where ever they had found shelter, and after joors of trekking, made it through the storm. Trailbreaker let the force field fall and led the way to a small transport tucked under an overhang. He keyed open the door and led the way in.

We secured Jazz to a berth, then I assisted Trailbreaker in getting our transport into the air and on its way back to our headquarters.

A flurry of mechs sprang into action when we touched down. Ratchet was right there with a mobile berth to get Jazz to the medbay. I pinged him with an urgent/important ping and was answered with an irritable _::what?::_ in response.

I passed along the information about the tracking device, and for once received a _::thanks. I'll check him over thoroughly.::_ before the comm line closed firmly and Ratchet returned his full attention to Jazz.

I thanked Trailbreaker, who gave me his easy smile and nodded before moving off to his own duties. I made my way to my office to write up a report on the Decepticon stronghold for the Prime, unsurprised when the Prime himself made his way to my office to get my personal report. He settled himself in the largest seat I had in my office and gazed serenely at me.

I sighed and set aside the pad I used for composing, folding my hands and giving the Prime a look from under my optic ridges.

The Prime looked at me, then asked me an unexpected question. "Are you ever going to move Jazz out of this rut you've fallen into?"

I stared at him, astonished. I had only come to the conclusion that I needed to do something to move Jazz out of his comfortable habits, and here was the Prime, telling me much the same.

He chuckled. "I have known Jazz longer than you have, and I have watched him. He gets comfortable and doesn't like to change things. You've reached a place between you where Jazz is happy and disinclined to move. So it's your turn to do something with this relationship."

I nodded slowly. "I had just reached that conclusion myself."

"Good," he answered, "then I won't have to kick you in the aft. What can I do to help?"

I foundered. I had no answer for him. He chuckled again and proposed a solution.

"I think you both need a couple of duty cycles off, away from the rest of the army but not too far away."

I nodded in agreement, and he continued, "This base is much larger than we actually use, and Hound has found a couple of back rooms that make a good billet but are still within reach if we need you. I'm going to order you to stay there, and Jazz as well, for the next three duty cycles."

I smiled at him. "Thank you, Prime."

"You'll find everything you need there." He transmitted the location of the rooms to me, and stood up to leave. "Good luck, Prowl."

* * *

I left my office and checked the rooms. It was two small rooms, and Hound was in there putting the finishing touches on a pair of sleeping mats. There was a small stock of energon, some data pads and a Praxian chair. There were a couple of small lamps to light a small area, but otherwise, the rooms were bare.

Hound came out of the back room where the mats were and asked, "Did I forget anything?"

I replied, "No, Hound, this is wonderful. Thank you for taking the time."

He smiled. "You're welcome, Prowl. Best of luck to you."

"Thank you." I answered, and left with him.

Ratchet escorted Jazz to the rooms, updating me as I went with them. _::I found two more tracking devices on Jazz, but none on Bumblebee and only one on Mirage. Thanks for telling me about them. Right now, the Decepticons are chasing petrorats far away from here. When we get there, I'm to lock you in and disable your comms for medical reasons. I can always transmit a code that will turn them on if we need you. No one will disturb you, because very few mechs know where you are. Use this time wisely, Prowl.::_

_::I will, Ratchet. Thank you for your help with this.::_

_::I'm cheering for you, Prowl.::_

_::You would also like to win the pool.::_ I commented.

He only grinned at me, and waved us into the rooms. He sent a code and my comm lines shut down, then Ratchet stepped back and the doors locked.

Jazz looked at me as I looked at him.

"Now what?" Jazz asked me. He knew something was going on, but had no idea what it was. He trusted me, however, and was happy to be with me.

"Now we make ourselves comfortable and try to relax and heal." I answered him, pulling out the chair, a simple triangular cushion that rested against my lower back and allowed my doors to continue their free movement and reaching for a pad. As I had thought, Hound had provided novels, but no work files. I flipped through a couple until I found an old favorite and began to read it.

Jazz looked at me for a long while, then slowly lowered himself to the floor and began to make himself comfortable. Soft music filled the silence, but it was one of my favorite pieces and I relaxed even further as Jazz found a novel to read.

We passed a few joors in companionable silence until Jazz's intakes hitched and I looked up in concern. He gave me his sweet smile and said, "I think I need to recharge, Prowl."

I got up and helped him to his feet, inquiring if he needed fuel before recharge. He shook his head and accepted my help getting back to the sleeping mats. I helped him get comfortable and he dropped into recharge.

I returned to the main room and dowsed the lights, making my way to the other sleeping mat. It was time to implement my plan.

I pushed the other mat close to Jazz's and laid down, parting my armour and pulling Jazz close to me. Even in recharge he responded to my closeness and his armour also parted, allowing our protoforms to touch. He vented deeply and tucked his head between my shoulder and head, snuggling close and draping himself over me partially.

First step accomplished, I allowed myself to slip into a light recharge, holding my beloved close.

When Jazz started to stir, I came out of my recharge and began stroking a hand along his hip, just above his armour plating, teasing along the bit of protoform I could reach with my thumb. Jazz moaned and moved into the touch, clutching at my body. I continued the light touches, becoming aroused myself by the motions of Jazz's body against my own and the throaty moans to which he was giving voice. I shuddered and checked myself, not wishing to push Jazz too far or too fast.

When Jazz flicked on his optics, they were hazy with arousal, and I couldn't resist swooping in and kissing him, pressing slightly to get that taste of him that always made me feel that I had found my spark's home. He eagerly returned my kiss, and I shifted our bodies, sliding on top of him and rolling slightly so he was beneath me.

Jazz seemed to approve of this new position, grinding his body against my own until overheating warnings began to flash across my optics. I dismissed the messages without another thought since I did not care if I overheated at this point, I wanted more.

Reminding myself that Jazz might not want more, I pulled back, sucking cooler air in to replace the overheated air in my body.

Jazz moaned and reached for me, unwilling to lose my touch. I bent down and lightly kissed him. He responded eagerly, opening to my every touch.

I whispered his name. It took him a while to respond, but he finally did, and I asked my question.

"Do you want this?"

He was dazed, and I abruptly sat up. I wanted to seduce him, but I also wanted no regrets, no recriminations afterward. I wanted Jazz's full participation and willing agreement to what we were about to do. He tried to pull me back down, but I resisted.

"Jazz, do you want me?"

He fell back and stared up at me. I could see his processor finally coming to bear on the situation, and the haze of lust cleared from his optics. I waited patiently for his response. When he opened his mouth, I tensed, unsure of his answer.

"Yes. I want you, Prowl."

I dove in, kissing him hard. He lay there, pulling me to him, and let me do as I wished to his body.

I couldn't get enough of his mouth. Jazz kissed as if it were the only thing on his processor, giving me everything through that connection of mouths. I finally tore my lip plates from his, moving my mouth over his neck, using my glossa to delineate the vital lines of his throat. He moaned, tilting his head back and giving me access.

My hands were busy over his chest, smoothing over his protoform and under the edges of his armour. He willing shifted more of his plating, giving me more to explore. My fingers ran over an access panel, and Jazz bucked into the touch. I returned to the spot, gentling my touch, circling that sensitive node for a time before continuing my explorations.

Jazz was panting, his head tossing back and forth as he tried to give voice to his wants. I moved down his body, sliding my hands lower on his torso until I reached the juncture of his legs and I ran both thumbs over the joints below them.

Jazz gave a cry and overloaded, electrical discharges sparking all over his body. He remained rigid for a short time, then collapsed onto the mat, panting.

I smiled to myself, despite my own arousal. Jazz in overload was beautiful and I couldn't wait to see him like that again. I slid up his body and gathered him to me, kissing him as he came down from his overwhelming high.

He slid into recharge, an expected reaction to an overload, and I held him close as I initiated my own recharge, once again a light one.

The second time he came out of recharge, I was still holding him. I did not stroke him, merely held him in a loose embrace, waiting for him to make the next move.

He began to tentatively stroke my chest, wringing moans from me. Emboldened by my response, Jazz pushed at me, and I willing went where he guided, lying down and stretching my doors out so they were comfortable.

Jazz draped himself over me and continued his explorations, finding my sensitive spots and stroking them again and again. When he found my chest access panel, I couldn't still my body's reaction, thrusting up into Jazz at the intense pleasure that sparked from that site.

Jazz pulled back slightly, peering down at himself and finding his access port. After a bit of fumbling, he managed to open it and find the jack/cable and the plug. He tugged on the jack, gasping at the sensation. The cable unspooled and he was able to pull his jack out.

He then explored my access panel, figuring out how to open it. I let him, flares of sensation running through my body from his touch. He finally got it open, and pulled out my jack and accompanying cable. He plugged my cable into his port first, then picked his jack up from where it rested on my chest and plugged into me.

Our processors exchanged handshakes, allowing whatever access we granted. I had known this day was coming and had configured my access protocols to allow Jazz in very deeply, but I only opened the first few layers at this time. I didn't want to overwhelm him.

Jazz took longer, as he had not been expecting this encounter, and when he was done and sent the data packet, I was astonished to see that he'd given me everything. I had complete access to all parts of Jazz that could be reached through his processor.

In response, I gave him everything, too. We fell into an endless loop of pleasure and exploration. I really don't know how many times we overloaded, only that I was completely enthralled with all that was Jazz, and he was delighting in his access to me. Our minds blended together, weaving all that we were with the other's all and coming up with a seamless whole, a perfect picture of togetherness and oneness.

I fell off-line, completely overwhelmed with Jazz's presence within me, and he willing came with. Even in recharge, we were still connected.

Low fuel warnings finally caused me to come out of the haze of pleasure and joy. Our cables were still plugged into each other, and regretfully I disconnected them, giving a slight tug that enabled the cable to respool itself. I missed Jazz's presence deeply, feeling an empty spot not only in my processor, but in my spark. I maneuvered myself out from under Jazz and staggered into the other room, grabbing a cube of energon and swallowing it, needing the energy to continue. I picked up a couple more cubes and returned to the back room.

I coaxed Jazz up and helped him swallow a cube. That gave him enough energy to allow him to hold the next cube himself.

Between us, we partook of seven out of ten cubes left for us by Hound. Jazz was lower on resources than I was, and I was glad we had enough fuel to get us both back up.

I tucked myself next to him, and Jazz gave me a thoughtful look.

"Are you missing something, Prowl?"

"Yes, you." I responded immediately. Jazz smiled, and I couldn't help myself. I smiled in response.

"Yeah, me, too. I've heard…" he trailed off, and I looked at him, worried.

"You've heard?" I prompted.

Jazz seemed to visibly gather himself and his courage. "I've heard that you can touch your spark to another spark, and if you're compatible, you can sparkbond and always have the other person with you, no matter where you are or how far apart you are, always and forever."

I nodded. "Yes, but, Jazz, that's a big step. You can't go back once you're bonded."

"Would you, if you could?" He asked me.

"No. I'm yours and you are mine. I believe this with all that I am."

"Why, Prowl?"

"You said it best, Jazz. Love at first touch. I believe we were meant to be together."

Jazz looked at me solemnly. "It's a big step, but I want to leap and hope it's the right step. What about you, Prowl?"

I nodded, "I know it's the right step."

"Why?" Jazz wanted to know.

I shrugged. "I don't know. It just is."

He smiled at me. "Beyond logic and reason?"

"Yes. It's meant to be, I feel this deep within me."

He didn't say anything further, instead straddling my lap. We had never closed our armour, and now he began to part his protoform, the gleam of his spark shining through.

I matched him, allowing my protoform to part and show my spark. He lowered himself slightly, pushing our chests together. Our sparks reached for each other, tendrils knotting together and empulling/em until our sparks merged and we were one.

That feeling of oneness I had when connected to Jazz via cables was trebled. I was everywhere in Jazz, just as he was everywhere in me. The feeling of wholeness extended to every corner of my spark, filling niches I had never noticed were empty and soothing rough spots within myself. In return, I poured myself into Jazz, filling his empty spots and washing over lack with my own presence. I felt the peace that always stole over me whenever my path was right flow through me and into Jazz, coming back to myself via Jazz, filled with Jazz's certainty. We swirled through each other, bolstered by our mutual feeling of rightness.

We would never be alone again. He was in me, and I was in him, and between us we were perfect and complete. Wrapped in each other, we fell into ourselves, diving deeply to partake of all we could.

When we came out of our post-union haze, Ratchet was bent over us. Energon was being spiked directly into our lines; we both had incredibly low energy readings.

"Well, I never expected this from you, Prowl. Jazz, yes, but not you."

I muttered at him, "It was all part of a well thought-out plan."

Beside me, Jazz laughed. "Yeah, but it got out of hand, Prowl. You didn't factor in enough random elements to account for me."

"Next time I'll know better," I told him, "and I won't make the same mistake."

A spike of fear from Jazz had me instantly soothing him. _::You're not a mistake, never you. Just my plans, love.::_

_::Sorry, Prowl. I knew what you meant, but I thought maybe I was reading it wrong.::_

_::Never, my beloved.::_

Throughout, Ratchet was scanning us and looking at a device in his hand. He shook his head. "I've never seen this before. Well, not like this, anyway."

"Seen what?" Jazz and I asked in unison.

Slightly startled, Ratchet answered, "Your sparks. It's like one spark in two bodies. I've only ever seen this type of reading on spark twins, but you're not. It's just that now, you're reading like twins. Complete compatibility."

Jazz and I smiled at each other. Ratchet was only confirming what we already knew. We were meant for each other.

"Normally, I'd tell you to take an orn or two off to let the bond settle, but I'm not sure you need that." Ratchet continued. "I'll have to let the Prime know, however, but this bond doesn't need to be general knowledge."

"No, it doesn't." I said, echoed by Jazz's "Nope, nobody but Prime needs to know about this."

We smiled at each other. My life was vastly different than I had expected, but I was in a happier place than I'd ever been before, and I thanked Primus for the gift he'd just blessed me with.

The perfect mech for me, suited to me just as I was perfectly suited to him, together always.

The end?


	7. In The Aftermath

Prompt: "Why do all good things come to an end?"  
Summary/Notes: This is the FINAL story to the arc from Jazz's POV.

* * *

I stretched out on the berth, basking in the warmth of my lover's admiration even though he was klicks away and working. I grinned to myself, rolling out of the berth and readying myself for the cycle in front of me.

Bonding with Prowl had been impulsive, a dive off a cliff with no idea if we'd soar or crash. We'd flown, but afterwards Prowl's analysis centers had started running the scenarios. We forcibly shut the threads down, overwhelmed by how poor our odds actually were. We vowed to each other that we would make it, that no matter what, we came first.

I allowed the remembrance of what happened to spool through my processor as I prepared myself for the duty cycle.

_I'd been captured by the 'Cons with Bee and Raj, and I'd taunted our captors so most of their attention was focused on me. I had triggered my emergency beacon, not knowing if it was actually working, and took the damage the 'Cons dished out to me. I remember coming out of my haze and seeing Prowl, but I don't remember our escape or how I got back to the Autobot base. I just remember waking up in the medbay, glad to see the cheery face of our CMO bending over me. Prowl was right behind Ratchet, and Ratchet released me into Prowl's care. They'd planned something, I could tell, and I went along with it, trusting Prowl to take care of me._

_He'd taken us to a part of the base I'd never been in. There were a couple of rooms, set up with mats and a small pile of energon and some novels. Ratchet locked us in. I'd been expecting Prowl to make a move on me, but he instead made himself comfortable and started reading. I was a bit dumbfounded, but finally picked up a pad and started reading myself. We read until I was suddenly overwhelmed with the need to recharge. My injuries and need to repair caused my systems to quickly shut down. I remember making it to a recharge mat, but not much else until I awoke to Prowl stroking me._

_I had thought it was a processor mirage, Prowl touching me like that. I'd wanted him to, for a long time, but I was afraid to take another step. We were so comfortable where we were, and it seemed like tempting Unicron to move any further along. I'd rather stay where I was and be happy than change things and lose what I had. But I'd dreamed of Prowl, dreamed of being with him, and this was a dream come to life._

_I'd responded – how could I not? – reaching for his touch and in a daze. Then he kissed me, and kissing Prowl became my whole world. It was always pleasurable, but now, coming out of a recharge dream and finding my dream come true, his kisses became all that I ever wanted and I gave him everything I could through the connection we'd forged between us._

_I was so lost in sensations that it was a shock when Prowl pulled away from me to ask if I wanted this. Of course I wanted this! I wasn't saying stop, was I? But his real intent finally pierced the cloud of desire I was in, and I was able to answer him. He dove back in, stroking me to overload._

_I fell into recharge, overwhelmed by my body's response and thoroughly sated._

_When I came back out of recharge, I really wanted to make sure this wasn't some kind of processor mirage and I began to touch Prowl. He responded so beautifully, I couldn't stop myself. I connected myself to him and we interfaced for the first time. I configured my protocols to let him in. He was already the center of my world, the star my spark circled, and I saw no reason to hold back anything from him._

_When we connected, I know he was surprised at how deeply I was letting him in, but he quickly let me in just as deeply. It was beautiful and wonderful to be so thoroughly into Prowl's processor, and I luxuriated in his presence. I know my body was overloading, but the physical pleasure was second to the mental pleasure of being one mind with Prowl._

_We fell into recharge together, still reveling in our connection. When I came to again, Prowl was helping me sip a cube of energon. I was grateful for the fuel, since I was desperately low. When we'd topped off our tanks, I asked him about bonding. The experience of connecting our processors had been so wonderful that I wanted to know if that kind of connection was possible all the time._

_I was surprised that Prowl wasn't instantly against bonding our sparks. In fact, he was serene about the whole idea, and I took that leap of faith, secure in Prowl's certainty. I opened my spark to him, he opened his to me, and we were one with each other._

_It was as if we were two stars dancing around each other until we went supernova and created a new world between us. Nothing would ever be the same. The feeling that I'd always had, that I was missing something, was completely gone, filled with the presence of Prowl._

_I don't remember much after that, too filled with exploring all that was Prowl to pay attention. When I unshuttered my optics again, Ratchet was bending over us and scolding us. He said something about our sparks that I didn't catch, caught up in an incidental remark Prowl made about being a mistake, until Prowl let his thoughts slide over to me. Prowl also soothed my worries about bonding being a mistake. We were so compatible, Ratchet said, that we were reading like spark twins. I liked that idea a lot, and I gleefully sent Prowl the thought that we could now foil the twins in their pranks with our own connection._

_Ratchet also said that we didn't need to let the bond settle, which was good, since we're fighting a war and all that entails. He'd tell Optimus, but we didn't need to let our bond become general knowledge. We both agreed this was a good idea and returned fairly quickly to our duties._

_It was so much easier being bonded than not. I was able to access Prowl with only a thought, and while we'd worked together well when we were courting each other, being bonded made everything easier. Our teams were working together better than ever. If I got myself in a sticky situation, Prowl's tactical knowledge could give me openings I couldn't see by myself. When his plans fell apart, my ability to function by the scuffs of my skidplate allowed him to find his footing and come up with a new plan far more quickly and without the freezing of his processor that had plagued him before our bonding. We were stronger together than apart, and Optimus finally had a team that was flexible and strong._

All this had led to my current location, on a base under Ultra Magnus, making a visit for Optimus and evaluating UM's team. The sweet part was that I could instantly transmit my thoughts and impressions to Prowl without needing to go to the communications center and set up a call to the main base. I did that every half orn or so, sending a quick report that I knew was going to UM almost before I left the room, but Prowl was getting a lot more than I was sending over the open line.

I sent Prowl a wave of love, getting his love back in response and continued on with my duties, secure in my beloved.

After all, this was not the end, but the beginning of my life.

The fragging end!


End file.
